Whether you were a president, prime minister or preacher’s son, legendary singer Johnny Cash treated you with the same dignity.
According to promoters of a new multi-media experiential stage show, Cash is “one of the most important, influential, and respected artists in the history of recorded music. From the monumental live prison albums to his extraordinary series of commentaries on the American spirit and human condition to a mesmerizing canon of gospel recordings to his remarkable and unprecedented late-life artistic triumphs of will and wisdom, his impact on our culture is profound and continuing.”
The legend of Cash, a country music star who passed away 21 years ago, endures as a musical experience packaged by the singer’s son, John Carter-Cash, will hit the Segerstrom stage on Jan. 21.
The show is entitled Johnny Cash – the official concert experience and brings songs and stories from the “Man in Black” to the stage in a way that audiences haven’t seen or heard before.
The show contains video of Johnny from episodes of The Johnny Cash TV Show projected on a screen above the stage, a live band and singers will accompany him in perfect sync.
Promoters said in a statement that “this concert experience will showcase iconic performances from the TV show and highlight the spirit of the legend by revisiting some of his memorable words and anecdotes. Cash will perform some of his biggest hits, including “Folsom Prison Blues,” “Ring of Fire,” and “I Walk the Line,” and share stories of people he met along the way whose causes he championed – the working man from all walks of life. Plus, onstage, male and female singers will split vocal duties, performing their own takes on Cash hits,” The music never stops in this concert event.
While many of the performers and musicians selected for the show were too young to have ever experienced a live Johnny Cash concert, the event features Debbie Horton, the only female ever to play lead guitar on stage with Cash.
Horton, who grew up a fan of Cash, happened to convince her parents while visiting Nashville to bring her to a church where Cash worshipped, hoping he would happen to be there, Horton said in an interview this week.
As fate would have it, she met Cash as a child and ultimately became a lifelong acquaintance of the “Man in Black.” Even as a global superstar, she said Cash’s enduring legacy is built around his sincere humility.
“He validated everybody,” she said. “He would be with presidents, and then he would be with the bums on the street; I mean, he treated everyone equally, you know,” said Horton. Cash “wasn’t a person of like… I’m a star kind of guy…I knew him for over 20 years still, that persona still rings true,” said Horton.
Courtesy photo
“I was backstage with Cash at many, many shows,” she said, “and this was a time when you did not have to pay for a VIP experience or to have a picture with him.” The story that I love the best, he told this story in an interview one time. They asked Johnny, ‘What do you do when people come to your table if you’re out to dinner and you know they want to autograph something how do you handle that?’ and he said, ‘I just put my foot down and I give it to them and I’m nice too because I…appreciated where it all came from’ and he never forgot that’… he never forgot that,” says Horton.
Deep down, says Horton, Cash was like many of his southern counterparts who started off just wanting to sing gospel on the radio.
“It’s so funny, all those guys from that era, Johnny Cash, Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis, they all had this real deep gospel faith, they were like preachers, you know they should have been preachers…and I’m not the first one to say that,” she said. “They all loved gospel music so much and that was from their humble roots and all that.”
She said the show will also feature on-screen narration by Cash’s only son, John Carter
Cash and “really cool” multi-media that manages to make Johnny Cash the star of the show.
“My father’s music has resonated deeply with fans around the world and we’re looking forward to bringing this music experience to cities across North America,” says Cash. “I will help narrate the evening and share some intimate stories from my father’s personal life and career in music,” said Carter Cash in a statement.
“Johnny Cash is one of the most important, influential, and respected artists in the history of recorded music. From the monumental live prison albums to his extraordinary series of commentaries on the American spirit and human condition to a mesmerizing canon of gospel recordings to his remarkable and unprecedented late-life artistic triumphs of will and wisdom, his impact on our culture is profound and continuing,” he said.
The North American tour launched in Fayetteville, AR and continues across 85 U.S. cities. Horton said she was hired directly by Carter Cash to play lead guitar in the show. “The Johnny Cash Concert experience has attracted large and very enthusiastic audiences at every show,” says Horton.
JOHNNY CASH – The Official Concert Experience is produced by GEAlive, Quatro Entertainment, Maple Tree Entertainment, the Estate of Johnny Cash, John Carter Cash, and Sandbox Succession. For more information, visit www.JohnnyCashConcertExperience.
Tickets start at $29. Segerstrom Center for the Arts, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa, CA 92626. For info, www.scfta.org • Box Office 714.556.2787.